Beer apparatus



July. 9, 1935. I Y v ss 2,U@7,4l@8

BEER APPARATUS Filed Feb. 12, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 John V053 [raven for His Atlorngys BEER APPARATUS Filed Feb. 12, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 q; M27 12 36 40 I I l j] 63 El i l .35 My 26 1 i l 'ILL .Jblm Voss Inventor His A t torneys Patented ul 9, v1935 2,007,433

UNITED STATES PATENT O FICE;

John Voss, Chicago, 111., assignor of one-third to Arthur I. Epton and one-third to' Harry A. Steinmeyer, both of Chicago, Ill.

Application February 12, 1934, Serial No. 710,834

4 Claims. (01. 225 15) This invention relates to beer apparatus. 7 Fig. is a longitudinal sectional view of the It is an object of this invention to provide an Valve shown in Fig. 4; v improved beer apparatus which is relatively sim- Flg. 6 man end elevational View of a self-closple and inexpensive in construction and efiicient mg rubber Valve embodiedin' the inYentioni 5, in use, l Fig. 7 is a side elevat1onal view of. the air valve Another object of this invention is: to provide wn in .Fig. 6; 1 g

a new and improved apparatus f utilizing F1gt8is a vertical sectional view on line 8--.8 pressed air to force draft beer from a beer bar- 1 m rel through the cooling coils to the taps, and for 915a vertlaalv Sectmnal, ,lllustratmg 10 utilizing the pressure of the municipal or like part? of new t i 10 Water Supply line for compressing the air neces Fig. 10 1s, a vertlcal sectional view 1l1ustrat1 ng sary to force the beer from the beer barre new combination air and Water Valve embodied inthe air-compressing unit.

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struct the new apparatus so that the compressed illuspmted h draWingSaPd'iSShOWH diagram- 15 air is cooled, washed, and cleaned'before it en matlcany .Wh1ch reference 1s ters the compressed air storage tank and beer F understanding of the generail t t1on of the new apparatus before proceeding with barrel so that the compressed a1r enters into the a detailed description of the Same beer barrel in a cool, sanitary condition, thereby In the drawings generally indicates th new preventing the beer from'contamination and ex,- ailucompressing unit which embodies a ertmg a 99 u h Y compression chamber or tan kl2 having a water addlttonal opject of the mventlon Is to inlet line l3 which is adapted for connection to 1 and Improved draft beer apparatus a municipal or other source of water under preswhich 1s so constructed that by means thereof Sure so as to admit water into the compres the beer line or tap line between the beer barrel Sion chamber. or tank wherein is a p mcludmg h coohng 6011' may be pressed as the water level rises. From the tank ieadily drained when not in use so as toprevent '2 the air passes by Way of a conduit M to souring and spoiling of the beer in the dispensing compressed Storage n From the Stop line between the barrel and the taps, which happens when the beer is allowedto stand unused inv the dispensing or tap line and cooling coils over night or for other like periods of time.

Still another object of the invention is to con-l pressure passes by way of a conduit Hi to the beer barrel I1, forcing the draft beer up out of the barrel I! through the tap or dispensing line or tube l8 and cooling coils l9 to the dispensing struct the new apparatus so that the beer is pre- Valves. or taps (not shown) 35 vented from backflowing from the beer barrel jnfiowing watery under pressure, passes Into the pressure Storage from the intake line l3 through an ejector nozzle other J q W111. appear heremefter- 20 (Fig. 3) into an ejector pipe'or tube 21 from The invention consists in thenovel combinawhich it passesby wayofva branch pipe 22, that 40 tion and arrangement of parts to behereinafter isv connected to the. ejector tube 2|, into. the 40 des and i dbottom portion of the air compression chamber The invention W111 be best understood by refer- 2. As t inflowing t passes under presence to the accompanying dmwingsqshowlnsthe sure 'from the ejector nozzle 20 into the ejector preferred form of construction and 1n which: pipe zl, t forces theair, out of the ejector'pipe 1 a diagrammatic View! partly in Zl from which-the air passes, by way of a branch 45 tion, illustrating apreferred embodiment of the pipe 23 into-the upper portion 2401 the cham- In v ber l2; this portion 24 of the chamber l2 2 is a 1 P 3 View Of the new compresbeing considerably reduced in size and dision chamber a d ai o pr unit therein ametenrelative to the body of the air compresand embodied in the apparatus; i slon chamber l2, so that the air confined there- 50 Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the air in 111 be compressed by th inflowing water t ssi chamber d a p s i a greater degree of pressure than would be the therein; I I I case if the'upper area 24 of the air compression Fig. 4 is an'elevational view of a valve embodied chamber'were of the same diameteras the bodyl 55. in the invention; of the tank.

age tank 15 the compressed air, or air under The movement of the air through the ejector tube 2| causes the air pressure on the inner side of a conventional elastic or rubber air valve 25 of theself-closing type (see Figs. 3, 6, 7, and 8) to be reduced below atomspheric air pressure whereupon air under atmospheric pressure enters the ejector tube 2| from the atmosphere through the rubber valve 25, distending the opening 66 therein. From the ejector tube 2| the air passes through the branch pipe 23 into the reduced area 24 of the air-compression chamber I2. At the same time the infiowing water passes through the branch pipe 22 into the air-compression chamher 2 and causes the float 26 therein to rise upon its vertical guide rod 21. In this manner the incoming air is washed and cooled as it mixes in the ejector tube 2| with water emerging from the ejector nozzle 20 so that it passes into the beer barrel I1, in a manner presently to be described, in a cool, sanitary condition.

As the water level in the air compression chamber rises, and the float 26 rises therewith, the washed and cooled air from the branch pipe 23 is confined and compressed in the reduced area 24 of the air compression chamber I2, and as the float 26 rises it eventually engages a valve-lifting lever or arm 26 which is pivotally mounted, as at 29, upon a bracket 30 that is arranged in the air compression chamber I2. Pivotally attached, as at 63, (Fig. 10), to the pivotal valvelifting arm or lever 28 is a valve rod 32 which carries at its upper end a rubber valve head 3|.

. This valve rod 32 is slidably mounted in a tubular valve sleeve 33 that is concentric therewith. The valve sleeve 33 carried at its lower end a valve head 34 adapted to engage a valve seat 36 formed in the bottom wall of the casing 36 which provides the air compression chamber I2. I

Arranged upon the lower end portion of the valve rod 32 (Figs. 9 and 10), below the valve head 34, is a coil spring 31. When the iioat26 engages the valve-lifting lever or arm 23 it raises the latter, pivoting the same at 23 (counterclockwise, Figs. 3 and 9). During the first part of this movement of the lever 23 the latter raises the valve head 3| 011 its seat 38, which is formed in the upper end of the valve sleeve 33, thereby allowing air to escape from the reduced air compression area 24 of the compression chamber I2 down through the tubular valve sleeve 33, which opens at its lower end into a drain outlet 42 that leads out of the air compression chamber I2. This escape of air from the reduced air compression area 24 of the compression chamber I2 occurs at the end of each air-compressing cycle and reduces the air pressure upon the'float 26 sufiiciently to increase considerably the buoyancy of the'fioat 26, thereby causing the latter to rise rather abruptly or suddenly. Thisabrupt or sudden rise of the float 26 causes thefioat'26 to effect a further upward movement (counterclockwise, Figs. 3 and 9) of the valve-lifting lever 28 and also a further upward movement of the valve rod 32.. This further upward movement of the valve rod 32' compresses thespring 31 and eventually lifts the valve head 34 OH its seat 35,

thereby allowing the water in the compression flow of water and consequent air compressIom This prevents the system from rea'chlngia point The valve 34-35 is held of equilibrium between the rates of inflow and outflow of water into and out of the chamber I2, and consequent inoperativeness, that would otherwise occur; it being understood that the intake through line I3 is always less than the outflow through 42. This point of equilibrium is never reached in the present apparatus, however, because the intake line I3, when once opened, (by a suitable valve not shown) remains open as long as the apparatus is in operation, that is, until the air pressure in the storage tank I5 equals the pressure of the water in the intake line I3.

To drain the air-compression chamber I2- at the end of each air-compressing cycle, the discharge valve 34-35 is held open by the valvelifting lever 28, in the following manner:

To this end there is pivotally mounted in the air-compression chamber l2, upon the supporting bracket 30, as at 65, a counterweighted keeper or latch arm 39 which tends to gravitate (clockwise, Figs. 3 and 9). Normally the keeper or latch 39 is prevented from so gravitating and is held in the position of Fig. 3 by engagement of its lower counterweighted portion with a counterweighted trip 40 which tends to gravitate (counterclockwise, Fig. 3).

When the air-compression and water chamber I2 is empty, the float 26 is disposed in its lowered position and rests upon an arm 4| of the trip lever 46, as in Fig. 3. However, as the float 26 rises with the water level in the chamber I2 it releases the arm 4| of the trip 40 and the latter gravitates (counterclockwise, Figs. 3 and 9) into the position of Fig. 9, thereby releasing the latch or keeper 39, which thereupon tends to gravitate (clockwise, Figs. 3 and 9) into vertical position, as in Fig. 9. The keeper 39 is, of itself, unable to raise the valve-lifting lever 28 with which it engages as soon as the float 26 rises and the trip 40 gravitates into the position of Fig. 9. However, when the float 26 rises into engagement with the valve-lifting lever 28 and opens the air valve 3|38 to reduce the air pressure on the float 26 and consequently increase the buoyancy of the float, the latter rises abruptly for a short distance, as stated, and in so doing, raises the valve-lifting lever 28 sufliciently to enable the keeper 39 to gravitate into vertical position (Fig. 9) wherein it engages under the valvelifting lever 28 and holds the latter in raised position and the water discharge valve 3435 open until the water is practically discharged from the water chamber I2. At this time the float again seats upon the arm 4| of the trip 40 and pivots the latter (clockwise, Figs. 3 and 9) into the position of Fig. 3 so that the trip 46 engages the latch or keeper 33 and pivots the latter (counterclockwise, Fig. 3) into the position of Figure 3, thereby allowing the valve-lifting lever 28 to drop, whereupon the spring 31 pulls the valve rod 32 downwardly and closes the water discharge valve 3435 and the air valve 3|--38. The air-compressing cycle then starts over again. This cycle of operations continues until the air pressure in the storage tank I5 equals the pressure of the municipal or other water supply entering the chamber I2 by way of the intake I3. The foregoing is an important feature of the present invention, and it will be noted therefrom that the several aforementioned movements taking place during the air-compressing cycle are automatic in operation.

As the air thus washed and cooled in the air compression and water chamber I2 passes by way tions during which cycle the lower area of said compression chamber is successively first filled with water from said water inlet so as to compress the air in the upper area thereof and deliver the same thus compressed to the said air pressure storage tank, and then emptied; said cycle of operations repeating itself as long as the said water inlet is open and continuing until the air pressure in the said air pressure storage tank substantially equals the water pressure in the said source of the latter; said apparatus comprising means including a device arranged in the upper area of said compression chamber for withdrawing air under pressure from the upper area of a beer barrel or like container into said compression chamber so as to drain the beer tap or dispensing line back into the beer barrel or like container when the said tap line is not in use.

2. In a beer apparatus, the combination of: an air-compression chamber provided with an inlet and a water outlet and having a water inlet adapted for connection to a source of water under pressure; an air pressure storage tank having communication with the upper area of I said compression chamber and having a discharge conduit adapted for communication with the upper area of a beer barrel or like container; and means in said air-compression chamber having an automatic cycle of operations during which cycle the lower area of said compression chamber is first filled with water from said water inlet so as to compress the air in the upper area thereof and deliver the same thus compressed to the said air pressure storage tank, and then emptied; said means comprising a float in said compression chamber; a combination air and water valve in said compression chamber for discharging compressed air from the upper area of said compression chamber and water from the lower area thereof out of said water outlet; means coacting with said float first to momentarily open said air valve and then subsequently to open said water valve as the water level and float reach their upper heights in said compression chamber; means coacting with said last-named means for holding said'water valve in open position so as to drain the water out of said compression chamber; and means coacting with the said float and holding means to close said water valve as the float reaches its lower position in said chamber.

3. In a beer apparatus, the combination of: an air-compression chamber having an air inlet and provided with a. water inlet and a water outlet; an air pressure storage tank having communication with the upper area of said compression chamber; means associated with said water inlet and with said air inlet constantly injecting both air and water into said compression chamber as long as said water inlet is open; a float in said compression chamber; a combination air and water valve in said compression chamber for discharging both compressed air from the upper area of said compression chamber and water from the lower area thereof out of said water outlet; means coacting with said float first to momentarily open said air valve and then subsequently to open said water valve as the water level and float reach their upper heights in said compression chamber; means coacting with said last-named means for holding said water valve in open position as the float drops so as to drain the water out of said compression chamber; and means coacting with said float and holding means to close said water valve as the float reaches its lower position in said chamber.

4. In a draft beer apparatus, the combination of: an air compression and water chamber provided with an air inlet and having a water inlet adapted for connection to a source of water under pressure; an air pressure storage tank having communication with the upper area or said air compression chamber; a unit for dispensing beer from a barrel or like container having communication with said pressure tank; means in said air compression chamber cyclically and automatically filling the lower area of said compression chamber with water and emptying the same so as to compress the air in the upper area of said compression chamber so that the air thus compressed will be in this condition delivered to the said pressure tank and delivered from the latter to the upper area of the said beer. barrel or like container so as to force the beer out of the said barrel or like container through said dispensing unit; said apparatus including a device for injecting water into said compression chamber; and means coacting with said device for withdrawing air under pressure from the upper area of the said beer barrel or like container into said compression chamber so as to drain the tap or dispensing unit including the cooling coils embodied therein back into the said beer barrel or like container when the dispensing unit it not in use.

JOHN VOSS. 

